This invention relates to a jig useful for hanging mesh-type fishing nets from their float lines or lead lines.
Commercial fishing nets may be formed of mesh which may be hundreds of feet, or even hundreds of fathoms, long and a number of feet deep. The upper edge of the mesh is tied to an elongated float line. The lower edge of the mesh is tied to a lead line so that the mesh floats approximately vertically in the water. Attaching the mesh to the two lines is performed by a process known as "net hanging".
The net hanging process typically involves stringing a cord, referred to as twine, through a series of adjacent mesh loops and then tying the cord to the line. The cord is then strung through the next group of mesh loops and retied to the line, with this repeated along the length of the line. Thus, the large mesh sheet is loosely secure to the respective lines, by the cord, which is attached at spaced locations to the lines.
The hanging process is performed by hand. The hanger manually slips the cord or twine through adjacent mesh loops, makes the knot which ties the twine to the line, then repeats the process manually along the length of the net. This is a time consuming and exacting task, particularly, since the space between each adjacent pair of knots is critical to the operation of the net.
Depending upon the spacing between the knots, the mesh net is hung either more or less loosely along the length of the line. This results in variations in the width of the individual mesh loops, i.e., they may be wider or else, narrower and more vertically elongated. In turn, this configuration of the mesh loops affects the net's fish catching properties.
Fisherman typically prefer different widths of the mesh loops for different fishing conditions. Thus, there are different preferences for the spacings between the knots. But, for any one net, the spacing between the knots must be uniform. This is very difficult to achieve manually.
The invention herein is concerned with a jig which accurately spaces the adjacent knots for the net hanger and permits him to make the required knots rapidly, much faster than by other techniques available.
Previous techniques involved simply measuring or marking the spaces between one finished knot to the location of the next knot to be applied. However, that technique is relatively slow, compared to the jig of this invention. Moreover, the previous techniques lack precision, particularly where the net is long and requires a large number of knots so that the net hanger has difficulty in repetitively tying precisely the same distance between adjacent knots along this long length. Attempts have been made to use devices to assist the net hanger. But, such devices were very cumbersome, not easily or precisely adjustable, and not as strong as is desirable for the intended purpose.